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16 Feb 2013

February 16th

I'm worried by the meteor hit in
Russia's Ural Mountains. It landed in a lake near Chebarkul rather than on top
of the town. I can imagine how frightening it must have been for the residents
nearby. The shock waves knocked out windows and, besides injuring nearly 1,000 people
with flying glass, must have damaged eardrums. Mothers would have hugged their
children to combat the fear of the unknown. In times of stress, it is natural
to think of our families and pull together to help each other.

www.thetimes.co.uk

Thank goodness the 2012 DA 14
passed by at its closest at 19.25 GMT on Friday without a hitch as charted. The
experts say they can't predict every rock of flying debris heading our way. A
worrying report in the BBC news notes how little warning we had about several
other comets over the past few years. Click here to read the full story. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21459861
Space rocks can take us by surprise at any time.

Astronomers don't know anything
about many near-Earth asteroids that are 20 times larger and radically heavier
than this week's visitor. Any of these up to 1 km rocks could be civilization-ending.

A spokesperson at the University
of Kent reported that they were far from having the problem covered. Some help
is potentially at hand - the dedicated Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert
System or Atlas, designed to give at least a few days' notice of impending
asteroids by scanning the whole sky every night. Also, amateur asteroid enthusiasts
share vital information. But the problem remains. We could be taken unaware by
a completely unknown asteroid at any time.

iStockphoto

The best thing to do is live each
day as if it will be your last. How often do we suffer from the, 'if only' thoughts when a beloved pet or relative
dies? Love your family and those around you now. I've often read these, or similar, words from wise men,
'Now is the only reality'.